June usually announces the start of hostilities for
metal music festivals on the globe. Hundreds of events try or have already
managed to try to attract music lovers to choose due to their attractive
posters.

The choice is not always easy; I will try to help you
in your choices. Many festivals will be on the same date, overlapping one over
the other. Is this a good choice? I would say yes due to popular demand and the
difference between events. I will chose in this article, 10 festivals that may
be essential and I will make a little history of each of them and also tell you
what they offer this year.

Wacken Open
Air (Germany)

Of course I will automatically start by the most
prestigious metal festival in the world that is the Wacken Open Air. It takes
place, as the name suggests, in the village of Wacken in Germany. The festival
is always held during the first weekend of August and can accommodate over 80
000 people. By cons, despite the fact that today the festival has its own
moment; it has not always been the case. The first edition was held on August
24 and 25, 1990. The festival celebrates its 26th anniversary in 2015, which is
quite a feat, but everything was not always smooth.It is with hard work and enticing headlining,
which each year offered more choices to the metal amateur, that the festival
has managed to make his reputation. Since its inception, the festival has
received thousands of groups of all kinds and even managed to reform bands that
were thought impossible to regroup.

Wacken even has the world's largest competition which
is called the Wacken Metal Battle.This
competition includes close to 30 countries, of which the winner wins a record
deal with a major company and many other prizes. It is important not to miss
the Metal Market which is one of the biggest in the world as part of a
festival.Several packages are available
to fans regarding the campsite and you can also have the chance to meet your
favorite artists at the autograph corner.I was talking about surprises group meetings and 2015 will not be an
exception, as the festival managed to gather the group Savatage, which could
attract a crowd to the scene. You can see the 2015 lining on the poster below.
For metal fan who respects himself, Wacken is a must and I dare even say that
it is the Vatican of metal heads who want to make a metal pilgrimage every
year.

The Amnesia Rockfest is not a metal festival itself,
but a rock festival of any kind.We must
remember that the metal aspect is still very important.Everything started over 10 years ago in a
small village of just 900 souls called Montebello in the Outaouais region in
the province of Quebec.At the beginning
the festival was really tiny and grew slowly over the years to become in 2015
one of the biggest festivals in North America. Today the event can easily
attract 100,000 festival goers.Even the
population of this small village is deeply involved in the event in an indirect
way.It is rare these days to see an
entire population make this gesture and understands that the event is very good
for the economy of his village.

Let's talk about music, in its 10 years of existence;
the festival has hosted many metal bands like Alice Cooper - Lamb of God -
Anthrax - Meshuggah - Megadeth - Motley Crue and so on.2015 will be no exception, as the festival
will be visited by Slayer - Down - Carcass - Bolt Thrower to name a few. But
this success did not come alone. Because every year the organisation has kept
pace with its festival, it improved year by year. Several changes have taken
place either in the camping spaces, parking spaces and more. The event is
always held in the third weekend of June.

All this success is due to a young adult who had a
dream ten years ago and has done everything to make this dream happen. Mission
accomplished, because today the Amnesia Rockfest makes the prestigious list of
the 50 best festivals on the planet. Thank you to Alex Martel for having this
vision and also the perseverance despite many pitfalls.

Just like the Amnesia Rockfest, the Hellfest is the
initiative of a very ambitious young man who wanted a major metal festival in
France. But the beginnings were rather difficult due to various circumstances.
Originally called the Furyfest, Ben Barbaud took a turn for the named Hellfest
and moved the festival in France Clisson region. For those who want to be
situated; it is in the Loire region. To demonstrate that the arrival of this
festival has had an impact; even political power and several other
organizations wanted to block the festival projects. But one day, the
politician who liked metal, Patrick Roy (peace on his soul) came to put his two
cents and help the cause of the metal.

The Hellfest festival by this name, received its first
performances in 2006 with bands like Motorhead - Soulfly - Saxon and many other
groups. As the years went by, the festival has grown and presented bands like
Slayer and Megadeth in 2007. In 2008, the festival continued to grow both in
public affluence as by bands names.The
popularity of the event keeps growing as year go by and goes even beyond the
borders of France. The festival now combines both a popular and an underground
side which, in my opinion, is a very good mix and is a winning recipe to
attract more metal fans. Hellfest today can claim to be able to attract as many
as 140,000 spectators. The 2015 edition will feature a great cast that confirms
its reputation. Group as Slipknot - Scorpions - Motorhead - Judas Priest -
Nightwish and more (see the poster below). For every metal fan that will travel
in Europe this year or in the future, set the Hellfest in your agenda because
it is now part of the great festivals of the world.

The Grasspop was born in 1996 and does not have to be
ashamed of its world ranking of metal festivals because it is one of the
largest in Europe.Since 1996, the
festival as been offering bands like Iron Maiden - Slayer or Helloween and
subsequent years, the festival offered increasingly important headliners. The
festival takes place during the period at the end of June or nearby. The
Grasspop is not the only metal festival in Belgium, but it is the most
important.

Naturally during his long period of existence, several
groups have canceled their presence, but the festival has always managed
everything and as always quickly found quality replacements. For the 2015
edition the Grasspop hits hard with bands like Kiss - Judas Priest - Five
Finger Death Punch and Arch Enemy and many others as you can see on the
official poster of the festival.

This year the festival will take place from June 27 to
29, and offers all the amenities you might need such as camping, disabled
access and also a Metal Town, which will be approximately 1 kilometer of the
site and allow you to rest. The festival is located on the Kastelsedijk in
Dessel. So at your next visit to Belgium in June, think Grasspop Metal Meeting
and fun is guaranteed.

In 2008, Quebec has finally offered a metal festival
worthy of the name called Heavy MTL.As
you'll understand soon enough; the Mtl means two things, either metal or is the
acronym of Montreal.At its beginning,
the festival was held in June and gave us bands such as Iron Maiden -
Hammerfall - Overkill - Mastondon and several quality groups.In 2009, fans were surprised to learn that
the edition was canceled for various reasons. The second edition finally
returned in 2010 with bands such as Slayer - Airbourne - Rob Halford -
Kataklysm and again a nice bunch of additional groups. In 2011, for the third
edition, the festival upped a notch in offering groups like Kiss - Opeth -
Machine Head - Trivium and so on.As the
years advanced, the festival grew and offered renowned bands like Motley Crue -
Steel Panther and more.

Finally in 2014 the festival changed its name to Heavy
Montreal and takes a tangent for a larger public offering us bands such as
Slayer - Metallica but also bands classified as more alternative or punk rock.
This will have the effect of attracting a wider public with bands like The
Offspring - Pennywise and more. But beware, the festival has not denied his metal
festival mandate providing 80% of the liners as totally metal.Before introducing to the new 2015 liners;
some of you may know it, but in parallel, for two years I think, there have
been the Heavy Mtl’s little brother the Heavy Toronto. The latter did not last
long and stopped all activity. Evenko only focuses on the Heavy Montreal. From its beginning until last year, the festival also
had its own local contest was called the Road to Heavy Mtl and gave chance to
two bands from Quebec to open the 2 days of the festival.

Now, back to the new 2015 line up; this edition
promises even more than the earlier ones, with Slipknot - Mastodon - Testament
- Within Temptation - Arch Enemy and many more as head liners. So if you come
to Montreal in August, specifically from 7 to 9 August, it is a must to stop at
the biggest metal festival in North America.

As the name suggests, the Rock Fest Barcelona is
located close to the big city, specifically in Can Zam park in Sta Coloma de
Gramenet, a suburb of Barcelona. The festival has a really short history, it
took form in 2014. So what’s the relevance to speak of it? The reason is simple;
despite its two years of life, the line up for the 2014 Edition speaks for
itself!As an example; Manowar - Kreator
- Gamma Ray - Stratovarius - Epica and more. The festival only holds one scene,
but for 3 days and the quality of the bands presented are enough to not ask for
more. In addition, Spain had no metal festival for some years, then, especially
with the second edition, this event becomes one that deserves to be encouraged.
But before I tell you about this second edition I will talk a little bit about
the site facilities. A huge lot that can accommodate tens of thousands of
people offers kiosks for sustenance during a craving, fireworks and more.

Now let's get serious and talk about the 2015 line up
and you will understand why the Rock Fest Barcelona deserves our attention.
Dream Theatre - Nightwish - Scorpions - Sabaton and that’s only the first day!
Naturally, other bands will perform that day. Annihilator - Destruction -
Europe - Helloween – Obituary is performing on day two. Still not convinced? Then
turn to the festival third day. Accept - Battle Beast - Judas Priest - Loudness
- Primal Fear and so on again. That's why, to me, the Rock Fest Barcelona
deserves a good press and deserves to become known around the world as it could
become a must. So pack your bags and go to Spain this summer for Barcelona Rock
Fest.

The Summer Breeze is one of many German metal
festivals but is still one of the three largest and most important in the
country. The first edition was launched in 1997 in the locality of Abtsgmnüd
and was realized in this city until 2006. Then, the festival moved to the town
of Dinkelsbühl in Bavaria and remaines there until this day. The festival is
not as big as Wacken Open Air, but still draws a crowd of about 40 000 festival
goerseveryyear. Since the beginning until now, the
festival has hosted thousands of bands from popular to more underground ones.
We can mention names like Destruction - Children of Bodom - Arch Enemy. But the
festival also hosted some band from Quebec like Despised Icon - Kataklysm.

The festival takes place in mid-August and this year
the massacre will take place from August 12 to August 15.For those who do not know where the town of
Dinkelsbühl is located, it is between Frankfurt and Munchen. So start making
your luggage as the Summer Breeze awaits you with another solid display like
the new Panzer band and Sepultura, which celebrates its 30 years of career this
year. Just see for yourself by looking at the poster here below that the festival
reveals a solid line up and one for all tastes.

Naturally if you are from France, some of you will
recognize the name Motocultor. Here in North America, the name was virtually
unknown until Québec Métal decided to show interest in it for some of our
fellow Quebec bands participated. The origin is simple; Motocultor was,
according to my research, a band of disco music covers and also a direct
relation with a metal cartoon character.

The event started humbly in 2007 before just 200
people. Several small problems or inconveniences prevented the rapid expansion
of the event as for some other festivals.Unfortunately for France, politics ideas and purists, a little fearful,
were able to manage to slow down the festival a little in 2009. Despite this,
the organizers held stubbornly to grow this event for something bigger. In 2010
the festival really begins to take shape with a true high quality line up and a
3-day festival. As the years advanced, the organizing overdrove and started to get
nice results. Groups like Annihilator - Therion - Epica - Kreator and many more
threaded the Motocultor boards. This event deserves to be known within the
North American metal amateurs.

For 2015, the festival is not relaying on his 2014
success. Instead it offered a 2015 monster line up. Sepultura - Carcass - Death
DTA and let’s not forget our fellows from Kataklysm and many more (see the
poster here below). I have piqued your interest and you would like to visit the
Motocultor this year?Then head over to
Brittany in France for August 14-15 and 16, more precisely in St-Nolff
(department 56).

Does the name Metalcamp mean anything to you? If so,
then you already know the Metal Days. It is the same festival and made a name
change in 2013.Established in 2004, in
Tomlin, Slovenia more precisely in a beautiful heavenly valley where every
metal lover lives a unique experience. Imagine seeing an outdoor concert with a
beautiful beach nearby. That's the Metal Days. Since its inception, the
festival has never really been on the same date but has always offered quality
line ups. It is a unique festival that allows you to relax in the sun while
watching excellent concerts or even be on the campsite feasting with friends. I
do not really know the reason of the name change, but one thing is certain, the
quality has not been affected. Since 2004, many groups have trodden the boards
of this unique festival like Slayer - Brainstorm - Yngwie Malmsteen and
hundreds of other excellent bands. As the years have advanced, the festival has
grown and 2015 will only improve everything because the head liners are heavy
stuff!Accept - Black Label Society -
Queensryche and more will make you spend an unforgettable moment in a dream
environment.

The Bang Your Head is another German festival. Like
his friends mentioned above, the festival has an excellent reputation since the
first edition was launched in 1996. Today, and since 1999, the festival takes
place in Baligen, which lies south of Stuttgart. Originally, the festival was
taking place in a concert room and only about 600 people attended. For
convenience reasons, but also for security, the organization decided to change
its location and also to do it outdoors. This turned out to be a good decision,
because today the festival now attracts close to 20,000 metal heads per
edition. Like any good festival, the Bang Your Head has offered to its great
supporters a good line up. 2015 will certainly not break that tradition with
bands like Jag Panzer - Loudness - Exciter - Sepultura and more. The festival
will take place from July 16 to 18.

Naturally, these are short introductions to these
festivals and I have chosen only ten. You need to know that through the planet,
I listed so far, beyond 286 festivals ranging from smaller to larger. Those I
have chosen here deserve some attention and like many festival goers are making
a kind of tour of the summer events, it is a good start to forge a rock solid
schedule, but especially a metal one!

70 000 Tons of Metal 2018

Hellzine

About Me

Québec-Métal exists to promote the metal scene. Bands from Quebec especially, as well as the whole metal world is offered to you metalheads from Quebec, Canada or throughout the world. STAY METAL !!!!!!!